Stories from the field

Stories tagged with Americas

Known to be not only be one of Central America’s most exciting places to celebrate the Easter holidays, but also one of the world’s, Guatemala is home to some of the most elaborate celebrations leading up to Easter Sunday to commemorate the Passion, Crucifixion and Resurrection of Christ.

Historically used as a way to explain the story of Jesus, Semana Santa traditions in Guatemala combine the Holy Week processions of Spanish Catholics from the 1500s with an ancient Mayan tradition of creating intricate alfombras (carpets) for kings to walk upon.... Continue Reading >>

Yes, folks, I present to you, Kiva field partner EDAPROSPOs jack-of-all-trades Kiva Coordinator - HARRIS. (his official title is Asistente de Finanzas y Operaciones, aka Finance and Operations Assistant, for all you non-Spanish speakers reading this correspondence.)

Alright, you caught me. No rivers were forded, nor were any woods traversed. Mostly dirt roads were traveled on and hillsides were (carefully) climbed.

Life in Peru has been wonderfully intense, exciting, tiring, and challenging over the last few weeks. I am not going to dwell on the awesome ceviche and seafood I have been fortunate enough to eat. Nor will I say much about the recent 5.1 earthquake that originated 50 miles off the coast of Lima (or 4.6, depending on where you get your earthquake news from).

Costa Rica is a land of beautiful beaches and some of the world's most astounding natural wonders. But, more than anything, Costa Rica is a land of coffee. Coffee in the morning, coffee at noon, coffee after lunch and coffee with dinner. Coffee not only powers your average Costa Rican worker through the day, but is also one of the country's biggest economic drivers.

So, it is with alarm that I note that I've only been in Costa Rica for a couple of weeks, but almost every Kiva borrower that I... Continue Reading >>

A Happy Holidays to the Kiva family everywhere! May your celebrations be filled with foods and flavor, smiling faces, natural beauty, light and memories… here are some gifts from around the world courtesy of the Kiva Fellows 19th class:

The “End of the World” is coming this Friday and I couldn’t be more excited about it!

Living in the heart of the Mayan Empire has given me the opportunity to get to the bottom of all the “End of the World” rumors that I’m sure you’ve all heard about by now.

It has been said that the Mayans predicted the world’s demise to be scheduled for December 21, 2012, and just like any international apocalypse talk, marketing schemes and business ploys followed soon after.

Any Kiva Fellow will tell you that visiting Kiva borrowers is one of the most satisfying parts of our experience. This is our moment to go beyond the borrower photographs and short biographies on the Kiva website. We greet borrowers by shaking hands and kissing cheeks, we sit in their homes, we walk through their fields, we touch the garments they sew and taste the baked goods from their ovens, we learn the names of their cows, and we try to make their children smile.

These are moments when we transcend the digital world and our Kiva connections become human.

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About Kiva Fellows Program

Kiva Fellows are volunteers who maximize Kiva's impact around the world. By working closely with our Field Partners in over 50 countries, they make sure loan dollars go where they're needed most -- while having a few adventures along the way. Learn more >>